Freedom of Information
From 11th November 2019 the provisions of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 come into force with regard to Scottish Housing Associations and Co-operatives. Freedom of Information allows anyone the right to access to a range of information the Association holds with regard to for example how we make decisions or financial information about the Association.
Publication Scheme
The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (the Act) requires Scottish public authorities to adopt and maintain a publication scheme which has the approval of the Scottish Information Commissioner, and publish information in accordance with that scheme.
Authorities are under a legal obligation to:
- publish the classes of information that the authority makes routinely available, and;
- tell the public how to access the information and whether information is available free of charge or on payment.
Alongside the Act, the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (the EIRs) provide a separate right of access to the environmental information that we hold.
Southside Housing Association has adopted the Model Publication Scheme 2018, produced and approved by the Scottish Information Commissioner. Our Management Committee approved the adoption of this Model Publication Scheme in October 2019
The Scheme can also be viewed in Publication Scheme Resources at the Scottish Information Commissioner website.
The scheme set out our commitment to make certain classes of information routinely available, such as policies and procedures, minutes of meetings, annual reports and financial information. We have developed a Guide to Information for this purpose and this also contains details of the environmental information that we routinely make available.
The Association has also produced our own Guide to Information which sets out information about who we are and what we do, and provides signposts to where we proactively publish information under the classes of information sets out in the Model Publication Scheme.
How to Make a Request
Anyone can make a request under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002. You can make your request in writing, by email or by any other method that is recorded.
If you wish to make a request for information or if you require any advice or assistance in relation to Freedom of Information or the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 please contact us at the address below:
Corporate Compliance Officer
Southside Housing Association,
Southside House 135 Fifty Pitches Road
Glasgow
G51 4EB
Phone: 0141 422 1112
Email: csd@southside-ha.co.uk
Withholding Information
Under Freedom of Information legislation, information may be withheld if there is a good reason for doing so. If we withhold information, we will let you know why. If you are unhappy with our decision, or with the way we have dealt with your request, you can ask us to review our decision. If you do not agree with the outcome of the review, you can ask the Scottish Information Commissioner to investigate.
